In recent years, advances in technology, as well as ever evolving tastes in style, have led to substantial changes in the design of automobiles. One of the changes involves the power usage and complexity of the various electrical systems within automobiles, particularly alternative fuel vehicles, such as hybrid, electric, and fuel cell vehicles.
Many of the electrical components, including the electric motors used in electric and hybrid electric vehicles, receive electrical power from alternating current (AC) power supplies. However, the power sources (e.g., batteries) used in such applications provide only direct current (DC) power. Thus, devices known as power inverters are used to convert the DC power to AC power. In addition, double ended inverter topologies can be used to drive a single AC motor with two DC power sources.
It may be desirable to use a fuel cell as a DC power source in a double ended inverter system. A fuel cell can be realized as a series connection of many low voltage cells. This type of implementation favors a low voltage, high current stack technology. These fuel cell power systems require a boost converter and additional energy storage to operate efficiently with high voltage electric traction components. However, it may be impractical in a vehicle application to use a separate and distinct boost converter and an associated inverter component with a fuel cell because these additional components add to the cost, weight, and manufacturing complexity of the vehicle.